This invention relates to a new and innovative tarpaulin with multiple attachment points that enables the tarpaulin to be flexible regarding its various points of attachment allowing more secured fastening of the tarpaulin with respect to different load configurations, sizes, and shapes. The present invention may be made of fabric, plastic-coated woven fabric, fleece or of unreinforced or reinforced edges and sides.
Tarpaulins are used as covers for protecting all types of materials against the influences of weather, cold, heat, dust and other harsh environments. In the prior art tarpaulins are used mainly for covering purposes. They are often made in a shaped form after being cut to a pattern. They may be provided with reinforcements, eyelets (or tie points) and other holding devices, for use as covers on trucks, cars, boats, protective covers on construction jobs, on railroads and for mail traffic, as well as for many other purposes. Tarpaulins which are provided with eyelets, supporting strips or other fastening means, have become very important in the construction industry where they serve to protect against weather, particularly during rainy, cold, and/or dusty days.
There are two drawbacks to conventional tarpaulins. The first is that conventional tarpaulins come in fixed sizes, so that even though a given tarpaulin might be ideal to be used for covering a certain item, the same tarpaulin would be either too large or too small to cover another item which is considerably larger or smaller. The second problem occurs when conventional tarpaulins are used in very windy areas, they were often tearing because these tarpaulins did not provide sufficient pull strength. Basically, too much stress was put on each fastening point, because the tarpaulins were pulled only from one angle.
In connection with the first problem, users of conventional tarpaulins were required to purchase several different sizes to accommodate different sized items. In connection with the second problem, the tarpaulins were damaged easily, mainly due to large rips starting from a small cut around reinforcements, due to too much stress around the reinforcements.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a new and innovative flexible tarpaulin that enables the tarpaulin to be connected at multiple points to accommodate different sizes of items to be protected or covered and a tarpaulin which can distribute the load to multiple points at strategic locations so that stress will be controllable at the tie down points. Multiple points of attachment provide the flexibility of allowing the tarpaulin to be effectively “shortened” or “enlarged” as needed based on the particular load size by choosing particular attachment points which “fit” the load size.
While certain novel features of this invention shown and described below are pointed out in the annexed claims, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details specified, since a person of ordinary skill in the relevant art will understand that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. No feature of the invention is critical or essential unless it is expressly stated as being “critical” or “essential.”